Knowing
by Matril
Summary: Lizzie Bennet Diaries. A series of vignettes from the perspective of various characters as they learn about Lizzie and Darcy's relationship, starting with the two culprits themselves.
1. Lizzie

_So...apparently I can't go more than a few days without writing/posting fanfic. Here we go again. :) _

The realization came in bits and pieces, not all at once. When he showed up to answer her phone call in person, that was something. Not everything, but a beginning at least.

But she didn't dare make any assumptions. Sure, he used to like her. Love her even….maybe. But did he really know her then? Or was he just enamored with some fabricated construct he had built in his mind? Now that he knew her….every abrasive, judgmental aspect of her personality…how could he possibly still care for her?

And now she knew that it _mattered_ to her how he felt. It mattered so, so painfully much. As long as he wasn't there she could imagine that maybe something had been happening between them. His absence might leave an aching hole in her chest, but at least there was the possibility, the hypothetical universe where she hadn't screwed up her chance with someone who might very well have been the perfect guy for her. Once he came and talked to her, there was no more room for hypotheticals.

And now he was here, his expression guarded as always, inscrutable. Coming here was a significant gesture, but what significance she couldn't say. No assumptions, not when she had been so wrong before.

He was kind, and courteous. Even when she was so flustered that nothing came out her mouth but nonsense. How could she be anything but flustered, sitting beside him, their arms just barely touching, trying not to get caught gazing at him? She had spent an embarrassing amount of time re-watching the videos from Pemberley, just to look at his face, and now he was here in person and it was a thousand times better but also terrifying. Yes, she was actually trembling.

_He said he did it for her._ Her heartbeat hadn't really been normal since he entered the room, but now it was fairly galloping. She wanted to follow that revelation to its natural conclusion, but she quailed. Resisted the urge to hope. The stakes were too high.

They weren't even friends. Did he want to be friends? Was that even possible for two people who never did anything by halves? He used to be in love with her, or something like it, and she could not imagine him calmly taking it down a few notches to friendship. More likely, he pitied her.

And she had swung wildly from hating the very idea of him – an idea fraught with misconceptions and unfounded prejudices and just plain stupid stubbornness – to whatever this crazy, dizzying _need_ was. Maybe love, though she reeled from that, refused to acknowledge it. But friendship? She had skipped right over that.

Maybe there was no way to have him in her life anymore. Too many bridges burned. She sat there in a miserable stupor, and then he spoke again.

He felt the same way. What did he mean – back in the fall? That was when – and he said –

More strongly even than he did then.

The pieces began to come together, and gave her the wild resolve she needed to let down all her barriers and put it all out there.

She didn't think there would be any room for doubt, one way or the other, after she kissed him, but somehow he managed to confuse her still. His lips were warm and responsive, but he sat stiffly, not really moving, as if he were stunned. At once exhilarated and petrified, she broke off and asked another flustered, hesitant question.

After the second kiss, she didn't have any more doubts about his feelings.


	2. Darcy

He had kept away for Lizzie's sake, but also for his own. They had approached something like friendliness while she was at Pemberley, and if that was the best he could hope for – which seemed more and more likely the longer she refrained from contacting him – then he preferred to preserve the memory of that time, untainted by further meetings that would only cause pain.

When she called, he couldn't guess at her feelings or her motives. He only knew that if she wanted to talk to him, he would talk to her, face to face, whatever the cost.

She was nervous and cagey, avoiding his eyes, reluctant to delve into any serious conversation topics. He tried to make it easier for her, to be honest without being pushy or presumptuous. Her responses left him with only two possible conclusions, narrowing it down from the thousand or so suppositions he had pondered while traveling here.

Either she wished to be his friend, but worried that their tumultuous past would prevent that – or, he scarcely dared to hope, she cared for him as he did for her. He could address both possibilities at once. His feelings were unchanged, even stronger, but he would understand completely if she would rather –

Then she was kissing him.

He had not envisioned this possibility.

That is, he had certainly indulged in the fantasy of her kisses, but they had only been idle thoughts, the hopeless dreams of a spurned man. He thought perhaps they might embark on a relationship, and perhaps, after a handful of dates, he might venture some sort of physical affection.

It left him quite dumbfounded.

Her words floated toward him through a blissful haze, and he dimly registered that she was shaking, still a little uncertain of his affection. That _she_ should be anxious about _his_ feelings! For her sake, but most assuredly for his own as well, he returned the kiss. He poured out all the longing and adoration and passion he had kept pent up for months, holding back nothing, and her eager reception told him everything else he needed to know.


	3. Charlotte

She almost laughed when the guy at the door turned out to be Darcy. It just figured that he would leave Lizzie hanging for days only to show up in person. Underneath that stoic exterior, he had quite a flair for the dramatic. Which just went to show how perfect he was for Lizzie. If those two idiots didn't realize that after this point, there wasn't much hope for them.

Smiling knowingly, she directed him toward the den. He hesitated at the door, and she practically had to shove him inside. Gigi Darcy would have approved.

She shut the door softly behind him and headed back to the front to catch the delivery guy before he rang the doorbell and disturbed what was undoubtedly a very intense conversation in the den. Once the Chinese food arrived, she gathered up her now unnecessary comforting-Lizzie supplies and went home to enjoy a double helping of honey walnut shrimp.

After Lizzie's bubbly response to her birthday tweet, Charlotte could easily guess that she and Darcy had worked out all their ridiculous misunderstandings. Still, it was gratifying to see the actual footage once Lizzie sent it to her. A little weird, to watch a video of her best friend making out with someone, but definitely nice to be vindicated.

_Short but sweet? Next up - Lydia!_


	4. Lydia

A couple of weeks ago, she would have jumped to her feet the second she heard the doorbell ring, hurrying downstairs to see if it was him. Back then, she was always checking her phone, looking out the window, waiting for him to come back, waiting for him to tell her it was all a terrible misunderstanding and he really, really loved her.

She wasn't yet to the point where she could stay in her room and think, _Whatevs, it's probably not for me, doesn't matter_. But she was getting better. Now she could wait for a few minutes before getting up and going to see who it was – all the while reminding herself that it couldn't be him, and it was better if it wasn't, really, because he had never been who he said he was, and she didn't need him in order to be a complete person, to be herself.

That didn't stop the pang of disappointment that struck her when she reached the foot of the stairs and saw Darcy going into the den. Darcy. The weird, dorky, scary-rich guy who ended up coming to the rescue like a knight in shining suspenders. Except he was coming to Lizzie's rescue, not hers, and ewww, she wouldn't want him for a knight. He was way more Lizzie's type. It was just that Darcy was really, actually as good and thoughtful and kind as she once thought _he_ was, and even though she wanted to be happy for Lizzie, it still stung.

She trudged back upstairs, trying to focus on her counselor's advice. _Be more compassionate toward yourself. We all have negative feelings. You're not a bad person for feeling jealousy or resentment. Accept your feelings, and then you can work through them and move on._

Okay. So she was jealous of Lizzie. That was okay. It was also okay to stop feeling jealous. Maybe not this second, but soon. It was okay to be happy for her.

A year ago, she would have teased Lizzie, maybe made a joke about how she had finally found a guy as desperate and nerdy as she was. Two months ago, she would have snarled that Lizzie deserved a lying snobby jerk like Darcy. One month ago, she would have cried, thinking that it was only fair to watch her sister go off into her happy sunset to leave her miserable and alone, just like she deserved.

Today she pictured the two of them in there, awkwardly fumbling around their feelings, and she managed a tiny little smile.

By the next morning, when she officially heard about it from Lizzie, she had already started thinking up a new list about Lizzie's non-single status.

_Hoping for something light-hearted after that? The next two chapters will be Mr. and Mrs. Bennet. :)_


	5. Mr Bennet

His study was in an ideal location, tucked away at the side of the house, well away from the front door and the stairs, but with a nice wide window that afforded him a view of visitors long before they could see him.

So it was that on the evening of Lizzie's birthday, he spotted a very nervous young man by the name of William Darcy striding up the walkway to the front door just before the doorbell rang.

He chuckled.

He had seen Bing Lee arrive at the house in a similar state a few weeks ago, and he expected the end results would be much the same. These youngsters may fret and fuss, but he had no doubt it would all turn out right.

He was bemused at first when Lizzie told him about the videos, particularly when the knowledge came within the context of Lydia's pain and humiliation. Once that trouble had dissipated, however, he found her videos highly entertaining. His Lizzie certainly had a gift for this sort of thing.

They had many a discussion after that, about her studies, her concerns for Jane and Lydia, and the salient question of whether to tell her mother. (She was convinced it was better if Mrs. Bennet never, ever, ever found out. He intended to wait for just the right moment to reveal everything so he could sit back and watch the show.)

But the one topic that hadn't come up was William Darcy. Her silence on the matter was more revealing than any words. She had talked about him incessantly when he was her favorite person to hate. Now his name never passed her lips.

He had watched her videos at Pemberley Digital. He could easily guess all the things she wasn't saying.

He continued reading, puffing contently on his pipe, until his keen ears caught the sound of a door opening and muffled voices. Then he rose and crossed the room to emerge from his study, just in time to catch Lizzie and William Darcy headed for the front door, hand in hand.

He cleared his throat. Both of them whirled, red-faced. "H-hi, dad," Lizzie stammered.

He gave them a long look, letting them squirm, then smiled knowingly. "Happy birthday, Lizzie."

With that, he headed back to his study.

He would let Lizzie tell her mother in the morning.


	6. Mrs Bennet

_Had a lot of fun writing this one. :)_

That Lizzie of hers had certainly taken a strange turn lately.

First she got it into her head to gallivant all over California on that independent study nonsense. She wouldn't have minded if Lizzie had come home with a beau on her arm, but apparently that was too much to ask. Book learning was nice and all, but what use would it be when Lizzie was forty and still single and childless? One couldn't depend on Jane to supply all the grandchildren, as precious and perfect as hers and Bing's children would surely be. And Lydia had shattered her hopes about that charming George Wickham by announcing dully that they had parted ways some weeks ago. The poor dear was quite broken up about it, but she was young still. Lizzie was practically entering old maid territory.

And then, after all her fuss about wanting to be independent, Lizzie had come back home early, without an explanation, and spent the last month moping around the house. The obvious answer would be that she had gotten her heart broken, but that was impossible. Lizzie hadn't mentioned any young men in months.

She arranged for the family to go out for a lovely luncheon on Lizzie's birthday, hoping it would cheer her up.

It didn't.

She knew something was really wrong with Lizzie when she didn't even try to argue or protest. She just pasted on a smile and poked half-heartedly at her food.

By evening, she was urging Lizzie to go to bed early. "You need the rest, darlin'. I'll just do my meditation in the mornin'."

"No, mom, it's okay. Charlotte's coming over in a minute. You do your meditation."

"If you're sure, honey."

She was deep in her state of meditative serenity when the doorbell rang, so she let someone else answer it.

The next morning, she was up bright and early fixing breakfast for her family. Her husband showed up as soon as the aroma of food started drifting through the house, and Lydia came down shortly after, but there was no sign of Lizzie.

"I'm startin' to get real worried about that daughter of ours," she fretted, scooping a hearty helping of eggs onto her husband's plate. "Did she get any sleep last night at all?"

Lydia let out a very unmannerly snort and said, "I doubt it." Her husband cleared his throat, and Lydia fell silent.

"What's all this about?" she demanded.

"Lizzie can tell you when she gets back," her husband said breezily.

"_Back_?"

Just then, as it happened, came the sound of the front door opening. She hurried down the hall to discover Lizzie entering the house, still dressed in yesterday's clothing.

"Elizabeth Bennet! Would you mind tellin' me the meanin' of all this?"

"Oh. Mom. Good morning," Lizzie said, cheeks positively ablaze. "Yeah. I can explain." She bit her lip. "Maybe you'd better sit down."

"Is it that bad?" she asked, clasping her hands to her chest.

"Actually, I'm not sure what you'll think."

She sat on sofa, and Lizzie joined her, fiddling nervously with a stray thread on her clothing.

"So…you know William Darcy?" Lizzie began.

"That insufferable, arrogant man?" she sniffed. "As much as I'd ever want to know him. Though I suppose we'll have to put up with him at the weddin' once Jane and dear Bing make it official –"

"Mom," Lizzie put in, "just wait." She took a breath. "I spent some time shadowing his company, you know, and I got to know him a little better. Well, a lot better. And then some – other things happened, and anyway, the point is, we're dating now," she finished in a rush.

For the first time that she could remember, she was rendered completely speechless.

"Mom?" Lizzie said hesitantly.

She found her voice just long enough to ask, "Since – when?"

"Um, since last night, technically."

"Last _night_?" she shrieked, standing up in shock. "Well! It looks like my Lizzie had a merry birthday celebration after all! Out all night; it's not too hard to guess why –"

"_Mom_." Lizzie's entire face was red now. "It's not – I mean, we spent a lot of time just talking – we don't want to rush – argh, I really don't want to talk about this with you. What I want to know is – will you be nice to William?"

She squealed. "You're callin' him William! Oh, this is serious. Of course I'll be nice to him, dear," she pulled Lizzie to her feet and wrapped her in a delighted hug, "he's the heir to Pember-whatsits. He's the richest and handsomest of rich, handsome, single young men, and _my_ Lizzie has landed him! I'm so proud of you!"

"Thanks," came Lizzie's muffled reply.

"Now, where is the dear young man?" she went on, releasing her daughter.

"He's, uh, catching up on work, telecommuting – he had a conference –"

"So hard workin'! No wonder he's fabulously rich. We must have him over as soon as possible. Oh! Dinner tonight, what shall I make? What is his favorite dish, darlin'?"

"Uh –"

"Never mind, we'll have him over every day this week; there'll be plenty of time for favorites. Lizzie!" She seized her daughter's shoulders in excitement. "He's so handsome, isn't he? Your babies will be as beautiful as Jane's." She choked back a sob. "This is the happiest day of my life!"

"You know, mom," Lizzie said with a little smile, "it's a pretty good day for me too."


	7. Jane

Lizzie called her the morning after her birthday. It was already nearly lunchtime in New York, but Lizzie sounded like she had just gotten out of bed. Happy, though. She had sounded far too sad in recent phone calls, try as she might to hide it. She wasn't sad now. And she wasn't hiding it.

"It's good to hear from you, Lizzie," she said. "What's brought about this good mood?"

Lizzie laughed. "Is it that obvious?"

"I know you, Lizzie. What's going on?"

"Well…I thought I should tell you before Mom did," Lizzie began.

She gasped excitedly and said, "Are you and Darcy dating?"

"Holy crap. How did you know?"

"Sisterly intuition," was her smug reply. "Of course, Bing knew it was coming too. The two of you are super cute together!"

"But –" Lizzie let out a noise of exasperation. "It really wasn't a sure thing. Why does everyone think that? Have you seen my videos?"

"Oh, Lizzie, I'm sorry. I really haven't had much spare time since I got here, and I'd rather use that time talking to you and Lydia on the phone than hearing about your life second-hand."

"I'm sure there's other things you and a certain gentleman would prefer to do with your spare time," Lizzie said slyly.

"Don't you dare tease, Lizzie," she laughed. "I can do the same to you now. But I'm sorry I'm so behind on your videos. One of these evenings Bing and I will sit down and catch up on them together."

"That's really sweet of you, but come on. There has to be a more romantic way to spend your evening than watching your sister's video blog."

"Is Darcy in the videos?" she asked, just as slyly as Lizzie.

"Um…he might be in the next couple."

"Then it sounds like your videos will have plenty of romance, Lizzie." She smiled broadly. "I'm so happy for you! Oh, I wish I could talk more, but I only have a short lunch-break today. We'll catch up this weekend, right?"

"Definitely. Love ya, sis."

"Love you, Lizzie."


	8. Bing

That Monday he was meeting with an accounting agency, one of the more boring but necessary elements of setting up a non-profit, when Darcy called him around noon. It wasn't like his friend to make personal calls during business hours, so he figured it was either an emergency or something to do with Lizzie – or maybe both.

Luckily, he didn't have too much more to discuss with the accountant, so he was able to wrap up within minutes and return Darcy's call while heading down the street to his next destination. "Hey, Darcy. Everything okay?"

"Yes. Thank you. I just wanted to let you know – since you'll doubtless be hearing it from Jane shortly – that Lizzie and I have entered into a relationship. A romantic relationship. That is –"

"That's amazing!" Bing cut in, saving his friend from any more awkward stammering. "I'm so happy for you, man. Jane and I were wondering how long it would take."

"Were you?" Darcy said wryly. "I'm glad we've provided you some interesting discussion."

He laughed. "Come on. We just wanted you both to be happy."

"Thank you. I am. And Lizzie is, or so she tells me." Coming from Darcy, this was pretty much gushing.

"I'm sure she is. Hey, you've gotta come visit us sometime. We can double date!"

"Well…we haven't yet begun making any long term plans. But we can certainly take it under consideration."

"Cool."

A couple of days later, he and Jane finally both had a free evening, and they sat down together and caught up on Lizzie's videos. They had plenty of interesting discussion afterwards.


	9. Gigi

William was infuriating when he was moping, but he might be even more infuriating when he was in a good mood.

At least, she assumed he was in a good mood. She couldn't know for sure because _he wasn't saying anything_. All she knew with any certainty was that he wasn't in Chicago anymore, he wasn't home yet, and sometime on Sunday he had popped up at the very end of Lizzie's last video. Then, total silence.

If he and Lizzie had worked everything out and finally gotten together, she was so, so happy for them. She just wanted to know! Was that so much to ask, that a brother tell his little sister when he had finally won the heart of the woman of his dreams? Like, before the entire rest of the world knew it?

She called him, sent texts and emails, asked Fitz if he knew any more than she did, and finally resorted to tweeting at William. She didn't know whether to squeal or scream when he liked her tweet. What did he mean by that? He was driving her _crazy_.

When she watched the video on Thursday morning, she forgave him everything.

She may or may not have also endangered the eardrums of everyone in hearing range of her desk.


	10. Fitz

At the end of the video, he jumped up so fast he knocked his chair over.

_What?_ Last he knew, Darcy was in Chicago. He was supposed to get back today. Obviously, he had taken a detour.

But it was seriously sadistic of Lizzie to end the video there. Like she didn't know what it would do to all of her fans.

And sure, he could guess what happened next, but come _on_. Once he realized Gigi was just as much in the dark, he spent the morning commiserating with her and taking turns shooting messages at Darcy's voicemail. He wasn't answering. That was a good sign, right?

"I mean, it was probably a private moment," he had to acknowledge. "If she doesn't want to share it with her viewers, that's her right. And your brother's, too."

"But we're not regular viewers," Gigi said, coming dangerously close to whining. "I'm his _sister_."

"Uh-oh." He had a sudden, unpleasant thought. "You know, this might be payback."

"Payback? For what?"

"You know." He stuck a thumb at his chest. "Really bad wingmanning. And…" He pointed at her. "Shoving them into rooms together. Interfering."

"But it _worked_! At least, it looks like it did. Really, they should be thanking us."

He laughed. "I wouldn't hold your breath."

Finally, finally, after three tortuous days of waiting, he and Gigi got to see the rest of the video with all the rest of Lizzie's viewers. In retrospect, it was probably a pretty mild punishment. Being able to whoop and cheer and flail made it all worthwhile in the end.

_Next up - Caroline._


	11. Caroline

_This one kind of took on a life of its own. It's tempting me to write more Caroline fic. ;)_

A year ago, her life had been almost perfect.

Her career, her social circle, her lifestyle – everything was exactly as she wanted it. Well, there were a few things she would change. Bing could learn to be just a little less gullible, and a little less prone to fall for every other girl with a pretty face. And Darcy could be just a little _more_ prone to sentimentality. Not that she wanted him to start writing her love poems; that would be ludicrous. She only wished he would do something to acknowledge that there was something unique between them – romance, for lack of a better word, though it was absolutely nothing like the fluffy bunnies and rainbows that characterized Bing's cavity-inducing relationships.

She and Darcy were a team; there was no denying that. A united front of skepticism and sanity against Bing's head-in-the-clouds optimism. Between the two of them, they kept her brother from plunging into disaster again and again. They traded sarcastic quips, observed life's absurdities with the same world-weary attitude, and commiserated in solidarity whenever Bing roped them into doing something far beneath their social sphere.

The wedding was the beginning of the end. She hadn't known it then. At the time she was feeling quite cheerful, though of course her time would have been far better spent in L.A. She had managed to get Darcy to join them in Nowheresville, California, and their shared disgust of the gaucheness of small towns was very gratifying. She could almost believe she was making some progress in whatever constituted their relationship.

And then the Bennet family came rampaging into their lives and ruined everything.

She didn't blame Jane; she was a nice enough girl. Terrible for Bing, though. He needed someone to push him, motivate him, keep him on the fast track in his medical career. Jane would just smile sweetly and say, "Whatever you like, dear." And her dead-end job, her lower middle-class status, would do absolutely nothing to bolster Bing's prestige. She might even pull him down with her. Clearly, they would both be happier with someone of their own station.

She didn't blame the mother or the wild little sister either, not entirely. Of course they were horrible, but what else could you expect from small town nobodies? The mother was obsessed with money and marriage and no one had ever taught her to be discreet about such things, or about anything at all for that matter. The little sister was an embarrassment to the very concept of feminine dignity, but she had no motivation to directly sabotage the Lees' comfortable social sphere. She would graduate with her pseudo-degree from a shoddy community college and probably spend the rest of her life as an empty-headed barmaid. She didn't blame Lydia.

She blamed Lizzie Bennet.

In truth, Lizzie might have fit well into her social circle, if only she had come from the right family. She was clever and witty and had an enviable gift for skewering the inanities of silly people. But she did _not_ come from the right family, and therefore had a total lack of decorum and respect for class distinction. She purchased clothing at the local mall and wasn't even ashamed of it. She not only had no interest in buying organic, she actually mocked those who did, as if she believed it made her in some way _superior_. She was positively brazen.

It would have been bad enough that Lizzie pushed Jane to pursue Bing, making it harder and harder to convince her brother than Jane wasn't that interested. Bing and Jane together was a problem. But Lizzie and Darcy? That was catastrophic.

Darcy, falling for Lizzie. It seemed to defy the very laws of reality. And yet she watched, helpless, as he drifted deeper and deeper into Lizzie's spell. It was all the more maddening that Lizzie was completely oblivious to it, even antagonistic toward him. Well, she could use that to her advantage.

For a while, it seemed like she had everything back under control. Lizzie hated Darcy, and Darcy had too many reservations – highly justifiable reservations – to do anything to actively pursue her. The Jane problem seemed to be resolved as well, once she had convinced Darcy of Jane's indifference. They picked up and left Netherfield, and Bing was safe from Jane. Darcy, she assumed, was also safe from Lizzie.

No such luck.

After Darcy's confession – just how deep had Lizzie gotten her claws into him, to lead him to make such a humiliating display? – things began unraveling with alarming speed. She tried to gain back some control by flying in to Hunsford and probing around for whatever Darcy had said in that letter, but Lizzie wasn't buying it.

Worse, she knew that Darcy was watching the videos now. No surprise that he had become curt and distant toward her – civil, but far removed from their former relationship. She sensed that Bing was slipping away from her as well, even though the danger with Jane was long past. He used to be talkative and full of energy. Now he would lapse into long periods of silence, and he evaded even easy questions like how his latest classes were going.

She didn't want to watch Lizzie's videos. Every one she watched was like a twisting knife in her stomach. Still, she forced herself through them. She needed to know what Lizzie was up to. Once Lizzie readjusted her worldview to the idea that Darcy liked her, it was plain that she had decided to use that to her advantage. She would welcome his attentions, even encourage them. Of course she would. Anyone who spurned the attentions of an influential, powerful man like Darcy was a fool. Lizzie Bennet was no fool.

Lizzie played ignorant about her placement at Pemberley, but that was ridiculous. She couldn't have known Darcy all this time and missed the very name of the company he ran. She chose it deliberately. How convenient to start a shadowing there, so she might casually run into him in the hallways, ask for help in her project, schedule a few private interviews. A brush of the wrist, a caress of his shoulder – oh, Lizzie Bennet was good at this. It would have even been admirable if it didn't fly in the face of everything _she_ wanted for Darcy, everything he ought to have.

Lizzie was well on her way to success when her little sister's disaster brought her home.

But Lizzie _had_ succeeded, and she had no idea how much. Darcy risked his reputation, his very position at Pemberley, chasing down a tawdry distributor. All for Lizzie Bennet. What had she _done_ to him? How far he had fallen!

And that wasn't enough for Lizzie, oh no. She just had to mention Bing in her videos, didn't she? She just had to leave him alone with Jane, not once but twice. And that was all it took for her brother to throw away all his plans, abandon med school for good and run off to the other side of the country.

If he had talked to his sister instead, she could have set everything right. She could have explained that he was just going through a slump, a quarter-life crisis. He needed to grit his teeth and work through it, and then his doubts would dissipate and he would earn his medical degree and embark on a stellar career path. Now he was going nowhere. Except three thousand miles away from her.

She fumed and steamed, but had at least some consolation in the fact that Darcy seemed to have ceased his attentions toward Lizzie. All of that changed when Lizzie began planting lures in her videos. _Tension? Heat? Chemistry?_ Oh, very clever, pretending ignorance, letting her sycophantic friend bring it up instead. Darcy would be showing up at her doorstep in seconds.

She booked a plane ticket immediately.

After her less-than-satisfactory confrontation with Lizzie, she willed herself not to watch the videos. Either Darcy would see through Lizzie's ploys or he wouldn't. It was all in his hands now.

She avoided the videos because deep down, she knew he wouldn't. Worse, she knew they weren't ploys at all.

It was easier to stay in denial, but Gigi ruined it in the end. Sweet, naïve Gigi, who still clung to her belief in romance even after her own terrible heartbreak. Her tweets were far too pointed to leave any room for doubt. Darcy had gone to Lizzie.

Might as well get it over with. She watched the videos, watched as Darcy became more vulnerable and effusive than he had ever been with her, watched as Lizzie welcomed his attentions in a way that could not be mistaken for seduction. They were perfectly, stupidly, sickeningly happy together.

She sat quietly while something simmered inside her, came to a boil and exploded. She threw her coffee mug with a scream that frightened her. Splinters of ceramic flew everywhere, leaving an ugly brown stain on the wall. She stared at it, shaking. Her cheeks were hot and wet.

She hated crying. It ruined her mascara.

It was the sole outburst she allowed herself. After that, she took control again. Her plans had been torn to pieces; so what? She would make new plans.

First apologize to her brother. Then, when enough time had passed, reconcile with Darcy. She could learn to put up with Lizzie if that was what it took. Find a new place in this shifting social circle. Whatever that place was, she would make sure that she filled it better than anyone else.


	12. Collins

_Thanks again for reading, following and reviewing! I have a just a few more characters left. I don't want to give away who they are, but if you can think of someone I haven't done yet, go ahead and mention it. :)_

The world was rife with exciting, lucrative opportunities, if only you were willing to seize them the instant you chanced upon them. Opportunities led to ventures, ventures led to successes, and successes led to more opportunities. It was a glorious, never-ending circle, and his was widening every day.

Today was a very good day. The plans for the international branch of Collins and Collins in Winnipeg, Manitoba, were progressing just as they ought to. Before long, he would be able to permanently establish himself there and leave the Hunsford branch under Ms. Lu's excellent leadership.

Thanks to Ms. Bennet's gentle suggestions at Thanksgiving, he was learning that granting Ms. Lu greater autonomy was highly effective in increasing her productivity and innovation. She was currently visiting her own hometown, but he need not concern himself that she would neglect her duties. She would emerge revitalized from the hiatus, charged with fresh vigor for her meetings in the booming city of Los Angeles.

Perhaps while at home, she would expand her own networks of influence by appearing in Ms. Bennet's videos. It was very savvy of her to access that vast viewership. Collins and Collins could only benefit further from more exposure among the masses of Internet-connected brethren.

Then a troubling possibility entered his otherwise cheery thoughts. What if she mentioned some hint of the coming expansion? She had signed numerous non-disclosure agreements, and he had full confidence in her discretion. Still, Ms. Bennet's videos were of such a casual nature in contrast to the professional, polished flavor of the content produced by Collins and Collins, and perhaps that could lead Ms. Lu to lower her guard.

To assure himself that such an indiscretion had not occurred, he searched for Ms. Bennet's latest video. Ms. Lu had indeed made an appearance, but to his relief his faith in her discretion was justified. Indeed, she was adroitly generating interest in the company's new developments without revealing anything prematurely.

And what was this intriguing suggestion? Ms. Bennet had embarked upon some sort of potential romantic involvement with Mr. Darcy? How fortuitous! This new connection could be of great use to Ms. Lu, and by extension the entire company. The possibilities were myriad and thrilling. As the nephew of his estimable V.C., Catherine de Bourgh, Mr. Darcy was already undeniably connected to Collins and Collins, wielding the influence of his considerable digital media empire. This could only strengthen that connection in a most favorable manner.

He contacted Ms. de Bourgh immediately.

She was both wise and wary, two of her most admirable qualities. "Are you sure about this, Collins? It sounds like a nasty rumor, generated to discredit my nephew."

"Indeed I am not able to definitively prove its accuracy; however –"

"You'd best keep your mouth shut about this for now. I'll need to have a word with William."

"An excellent idea! Meanwhile, I shall keep my ear to the ground, so to speak, poised to take advantage of any opportunity that may arise."

"Opportunity? What are you talking about?"

"A bolstering of our company's networks amongst the vast spheres of digital media!"

"Hmm. That's not a terrible idea. I'll keep it in mind for the worst case scenario."

Ms. de Bourgh was so endlessly resourceful! He followed her advice to the letter, keeping quiet about any rumors connecting Ms. Bennet and Mr. Darcy romantically until her own videos confirmed it. With Mr. Darcy's definitive words _She and I have begun a relationship_, he could proceed with absolute confidence and book a plane ticket for that very week.

It was all the more fortuitous that, when he arrived at the Bennet home, Mrs. Bennet could direct him to a dining establishment where Ms. Lu, Ms. Bennet and Mr. Darcy were all congregated together! It was a most productive meeting, and he could return to Winnipeg, Manitoba with confidence that he had planted seeds that would generate a bountiful harvest.

Let no one ever doubt that he knew how to grasp an opportunity when it came his way.


	13. Catherine

_So, I kind of took Caroline's passing reference to Catherine in episode 95 and ran with it. _

_I've written three more characters after this one - see if you can guess who they are. ;)_

Her nephew certainly had a will of his own. She admired him for it, generally speaking. It reminded her of herself. But there were times when his stubbornness was simply intolerable. Though he listened to her advice about the running of his company, in the end he always went his own way, frequently making odd choices and taking risks that she found unacceptable. True, the risks usually paid off, but when they didn't, the cost was high. And she was always there to remind him how he should have listened to her.

His upbringing of Georgiana was similarly exasperating. He was still a boy himself, attempting to rear a willful young lady, yet he insisted on doing it largely alone, with only the occasional assistance from their aunt. Georgiana had turned out well anyway, probably thanks in large part to the indomitable greatness she inherited from both sides of the family. She had a rough spell last year, some sort of mopey rebellion and a falling-out with her brother, but that seemed to have passed.

So he had underestimated the value of her guidance in every other area of his life, but surely he would acknowledge her accurate assessment of his domestic prospects. Every man needed a strong woman beside him, someone poised, competent and accomplished. The head of Pemberley needed nothing less than the best of the best. From the moment she met Caroline Lee she knew she had found her nephew's match. It was practically already arranged. They had known each other for years; they had an easy camaraderie that her nephew rarely achieved with females. Any day now, she expected them to announce their engagement.

Instead, she received a phone call from Collins with a shockingly unpleasant rumor.

Liz Bennet was an upstart, aimless and ambitionless, who would likely be happy to remain a graduate student for the rest of her life. And she had an appalling degree of impudence for an unemployed nobody. The notion of her making a claim on William Darcy, son of William Darcy and Anne Fitzwilliam!

She called her nephew at once. Well aware that any mention of Liz might cause further danger, she skirted the topic adroitly, asking only general questions about his recent social life. He was evasive, as she had feared, and when she mentioned Caroline he said he hadn't seen her since Thanksgiving.

This was worse than she thought. She tried Caroline next, who said nothing of Liz but did mention something else alarming. For two weeks in February, the CEO of Pemberley had neglected his duties while chasing down some sort of purveyor of salacious content. She had already gotten wind of the acquisition and the convoluted reasoning behind it, but she hadn't realized her nephew had devoted so much time and so many resources upon such a suspect pursuit. Whether Liz had anything to do with this or not, she could not sit idly by while Pemberley's best interests were being neglected.

She traveled to San Francisco as soon as possible and arranged an emergency board meeting. Her nephew met her at the door, feigning puzzlement. "Might I ask the reason for this abrupt gathering?" he asked.

She sniffed. "I think we all know what this is about." Things had become very serious. Given enough evidence, she was prepared to pull her investment from the company. That would teach her nephew to ignore her advice.

But for the first time in her memory, she was proven wrong.

As became clear very quickly from the reports of the board members, Pemberley was thriving, achieving new levels of success and prosperity. The Domino application was generating plenty of positive attention, and they were already preparing the next stage of testing. Other projects were progressing nicely, and no other investors were anywhere close to pulling their funding. It would be a highly foolish move to cease her own investment.

"Well," she said to her nephew, somewhat subdued after the meeting ended, "perhaps I have underestimated you. Shady acquisitions notwithstanding, you are running this company with competence. I believe your parents would have approved."

"Thank you," he said quietly.

"Now," she went on, brisk once more, "about Caroline –"

"I'm sorry," he interrupted, "but I really don't have much time to spare. I'm heading to Chicago tomorrow. Perhaps we could discuss this when I return?"

"Very well. Have a good trip, William."

A week later, she received a phone call from her nephew that left her speechless.

He assured her it was not a fling or a momentary indiscretion. He intended to embark on a committed relationship with this woman – which, she had to acknowledge, was fully in keeping with the integrity of the Darcy family honor.

She could not tell if she was speechless from rage or just sheer surprise. She sincerely doubted his compatibility with someone like Liz Bennet, and was deeply disappointed that he was ignoring her advice yet again. And yet – if he had managed to succeed in his business and in the upbringing of Georgiana by following his own stubborn will, perhaps he could do the same in matters of domestic bliss. She decided to give him the benefit of the doubt.

For now.


	14. Mary

Sappy romance was so lame. That was what she liked about Eddie. He didn't bring her stupid flowers that would wither up and die after sitting in a vase of dirty water for a couple of days. He didn't try to make idiotic sweeping gestures to prove his adoration, or waste money at diamond stores with the assumption that something shiny and sparkly would give her heart palpitations and make her swoon into his arms. Gross.

They would just hang out together, and talk about stuff that both of them liked. Sometimes they'd both sit there reading. She wouldn't change it for anything out of a gag-worthy movie romance.

Oh, that was another plus about her and Eddie's relationship. It wasn't aired all over the Internet. Sure, some details showed up on Lydia's videos, but it mostly stayed off-screen. She shuddered to imagine what it would be like to be exposed to squealing fangirls. They might even make gifs of her and Eddie. Gross, gross, gross.

After everything that douchey Wickham guy did to Lydia, she figured it was a good idea for all of them to keep a super low profile when it came to social media. She did a little rooting around to help Lydia figure out who had taken down the website, but that was it. She didn't even visit YouTube at all after that. She talked to her cousins the normal way, over the phone and in person. Like actual human beings. What a shocking concept.

She came by to visit Lydia one day in late March, and on their way to Lydia's favorite "froyo" place they passed by Lizzie and that Darcy guy, strolling along the sidewalk, holding hands and being generally sickening. Lizzie didn't even seem to notice her own sister and cousin walking by and waving.

"Oh, are they together now?" she asked Lydia.

"What?" Lydia squawked. "You didn't know? Didn't you see the video?"

"Nope."

"But I'm sure I must have mentioned it sometime."

"Nope."

"Oops. Are you totes mad to be left out of loop?"

"Nope."

"Oh. Well, cool. They're actually not super annoying." Lydia giggled. "Darce has been really nice to me, in his weird awkward way. He's leaving in a couple of days. Then Lizzie'll probably drive us crazy counting down the weeks till she graduates."

She shrugged. "They seem happy. Whatever. But ugh, please tell me I don't look at Eddie like that."

"No way. Lizzie is way worse. It's kind of sweet, though. I'm glad she's happy."

She glanced at Lydia, then asked quietly, "Does it make you jealous?"

Lydia frowned. "A little. Not as much as it used to." She managed her way back to a smile. "Thanks for asking."

"You're kind of awesome, you know that?"

Lydia bumped her elbow, laughing. "So are you."


	15. Wickham

The Bennet sisters weren't nearly as famous as they thought they were. People hardly ever recognized him from their videos, and if they did it was usually a vague, "Hey, weren't you on YouTube or something?" As the months passed, even those moments became rare.

He should probably be glad, since he was still kind of on thin ice. He wasn't going by his own name right now, and anonymity was probably the only thing keeping him from trouble. But it was killing him. He thrived on attention, and now he was starving.

Sometimes he'd visit his old Twitter account just to read the stuff people were saying to him. Most of it was pretty angry, pissy stuff, a few death threats. But some of the girls could be entertaining – at least, he hoped they were girls. _I don't care what you did, I'd put up with anything to have a chance at your hot bod!_ It was too risky to respond to them, though, tempted as he was to send out a few winky faces.

Then one morning, picking up something to eat at a convenience store, he got all the attention he could have wanted. Just in the totally wrong direction.

He was turning a corner to head into the next aisle when he collided with a heavyset mountain of a guy. "Oh, sorry, man," the guy started out, then squinted down at him. "Oh. _Oh._ You're that Wickham dirtbag, aren't you?"

Before he could get out a denial, the guy's fist was making contact with his face.

He crashed into the shelves, sending bags of potato chips and donuts flying everything. Sprawling on the floor, stunned, he watched as the guy bent over him menacingly. "Stay away from Lydia and Gigi, huh?" he growled. "And Lizzie too. You know she's with Darcy now, don't you? I bet he'd tear your skin off if you came anywhere near her."

He just let out a wordless moan.

"Hey, hey, what's going on?" The storeowner hurried down the aisle, standing a safe distance from the mountain-sized guy, with hands raised defensively. "I don't want any trouble. Do I have to call the police?"

"No," he managed quickly, through swollen lips. "No police. We were just having a – a misunderstanding, right?" He gave his attacker a weak smile.

"Pffft. Sure. A misunderstanding. Hope I knocked some sense into you."

As soon as he could get to his feet, he hobbled out the store as fast as his aching ribs would allow, mopping up a bloody nose as he went.

So Lizzie and Darcy had hooked up after all. He really didn't care that much, now that they had nothing to do with him. Except when it got him beaten up in a convenience store.


	16. Kitty

It had taken her some time to accept it, but she could not deny it any longer. Dark-haired Human Male was a regular visitor now.

She was understandably reluctant to accept him. Light-haired Human Male used to be a regular visitor. Then Mistress went away with him. She was gone a long time. When she came back, she was sad and quiet. Her face tasted very salty, and she just wanted to curl up and snuggle instead of playing bouncy games.

Mistress was finally getting more playful again. She didn't want another Human Male coming and taking Mistress away, then sending her back sad. But then, this one was very different from Light-haired Human Male. First of all, he didn't ever intrude upon Mistress's room. He spent more time with Darker-red-haired Human Female, not Mistress. And when she did go downstairs and encountered him while roaming the halls and rubbing against the doorposts, he seemed just as wary of her as she was of him. They kept a careful distance from each other. She could respect that.

When enough time had passed and Mistress didn't seem to be in danger of disappearing or turning sad again, she decided Dark-haired Human Male was an acceptable addition to the household. Head lifted high, she approached him and gave his leg a dignified rub. Then she marched off to report to Mistress.


	17. Maria

Wow. _Wow._

First Darcy said – and then Lizzie – and then they –

Wow.

She called Charlotte right away. Before she could start her long list of questions, though, Charlotte said, "Oh, hey, how did you do on that test you were stressing about?"

"What? Oh, the statistics exam. Whatever, it was fine. Charlotte! I don't want to talk about school; how could I possibly talk about boring stuff like tests after seeing Lizzie's latest video?!"

"Oh. You saw it, huh?"

"Uh, yeah. Why didn't you tell me? You were actually _there_!"

"Technically," Charlotte said in that know-it-all-big-sister voice, "I left before it all went down."

"Whatever. You knew it was happening."

"If you're really this excited, why didn't you call me right away on Thursday?"

"Statistics exam," she grumbled. "I've been so busy I hardly even have time for Twitter. It's _sooo_ annoying. Is college really that important?"

"Yes," Charlotte said, allowing for no argument. "You'll thank me once you have your degree. Besides," and her tone softened, "once you've gotten through most of the general education requirements, you can have some fun. Check out your course guide. I think I saw a humanities class called _Analysis and Deconstruction of Science Fiction Tropes in Western Television._ You could get college credit for watching and discussing Dr. Who."

"What?! Are you kidding? That's awesome. I'm checking that out right now. Thank you thank you thank you Charlotte."

"Still mad at me for not telling you about Lizzie and Darcy?" Charlotte was smug, but that was okay.

"It's fine, it's fine. I just wanted to ask – were you really nervous when you answered the door and saw him there? I mean, I'd be totally intimidated; he's like this huge important businessman –"

"I'm not intimidated by Darcy," Charlotte said. "He's a human being just like the rest of us."

"Yeah, I remember when you told him off in Lizzie's videos. That was _so_ brave."

"Bravery comes in a lot of different forms. I think you're pretty brave too, kid sister."

"Me? How?"

"Going to college is brave. Taking a chance on your education instead of settling for a boring, safe job."

"You don't mean you're _not_ brave! You're practically running the company now. You're not even afraid of Catherine de Bourgh."

"Well, like I said, there's more than one way to be brave. I'll confront my Catherine de Bourghs, and you confront your statistics exams."

"Okay. I can deal with that."

"Love ya, sis."


End file.
